My palms are sweaty knees weak arms are heavy... Bonus points if you know where that line is from!!

I am so so pumped that it is 7v7 season, my 2nd favorite football season!! 7v7 a.k.a. two hand touch a.k.a. 7 on 7 a.k.a. the quicker one… lol

7v7 football is a version of American football in which 7 players play offense and 7 players play defense. There is no line, they're all receivers, with one quarterback and a common goal; to score a touchdown in four downs just like in football, but as you can imagine the game goes much quicker. A lot of skilled players like to play this in the tackle season off-season, like my son. He’s a wide receiver, corner, and safety this is our third season of 7v7 football.

Me + my oldest son Juel, during last season’s 7v7 Football season

We play with our same league PME (Playmakers Elite) here in Northern Virginia and it is one of my favorite things to watch.

I'm gonna post a video of our last season, but especially as they get older they get more skilled and it just becomes a really fun game to watch. The teams get super hype, I'll play a clip for you here so you can hear how hype they get!

As you can hear, I get pretty hyped up too!

And of course I was just as hype this past weekend when I was on the sideline during our 1st scrimmage of the season! Which gave me the idea of creating this post, to provide you with the Season Prep Checklist for 7v7 Football.

As far as what to expect, this section always varies based on your organization, and so I have an asterix to suggest that you contact your coach or league to make sure of how it would apply to you; but I’ve listed the typical expectations below:

A GOOD PROGRAM SHOULD HAVE:

Developed coaching staff

At least one practice per week for players to work on fundamentals, agility, implementation of game scheme and execution of 7 v 7.

An outlined game schedule with a large competition pool. Typically 2-3 games are played in one day with competition outlined for at least 3 weeks out of the season.

If travel is involved, location information should be presented at the beginning of the season.

Website and easy access to registration portal and/or more information

TYPICAL COST:

Varies. Ranges I’ve seen: $95 - $650

SEASON:

There are some year-round 7v7 leagues; but a typical season lasting between four weeks to three months is during the football off-season (January - July).

how it’s played:

The object of the game is to score the highest number of points within the game. Each team gets four downs to score a touchdown (offense). The defense also gets points for stopping the offense from scoring. There are also points for getting an interception. The quarterback only has four seconds to throw the ball, and gets “sacked” if it’s not thrown within that amount of time; very similar to a delay of game in tackle football.

But there you have it! That is 7v7 football in a nutshell. It is absolutely so much fun and one of my favorites to watch.

One last point I wanted to make is about concussions. As parents we are all concerned with our child getting injured while playing and potentially suffering a concussion. The point I want to make is that concussions can come with playing any sport; including one that is technically “touch” as opposed to “tackle”.

If you are seriously concerned about your child’s safety while playing this or any other sport, I would suggest you ensure your child is being taught the fundamentals of the sport, which would include safety and proper technique (which would significantly decrease the chance of injury); as well as be familiar with the protective gear worn in that sport, to help your athlete stay protected and play smart while playing a game that they love.